No start

[6lucky13]

Had the car (‘36 Cabriolet w/ ‘37 engine) out a few days ago…it ran good. Got home and needed to move it farther into the garage. Tried re-starting…got a faint click then no spin on the starter and no gauges…nothing but horn, headlights brake and taillights. The battery is at 6.01v and terminals are secure. Fuse is OK. Thoughts, please.

Kerry

[fordscript]

My first thoughts were terminals....might be secure, but are they clean and getting a good contact?

[fourfords]

Firstly, I would verify the grounding areas around the car and engine compartment are clean.

[39topless]

Solenoid?

[JSeery]

Fuse has nothing to do with it, the ignition switch is connected directly to the resistor and then to the coil and the starter button is just a ground to the starter solenoid. Most likely a battery, battery connection or starter solenoid issue. Start by jumpering the solenoid to ground and see if it will turn over (the small post on the front of the solenoid). Now make sure the transmission is in neutral and the wheels blocked! If it turns over the car will move if in gear.

Next use a jumper cable to connect across the large post on the solenoid. Connect the cable to one side and just touch it to the other side. You will get sparks! If it turns over then the solenoid is bad.

If it still won't turn over and the first test just produce a click that tells you the problem is the battery or battery connections. I would pull the battery and have it checked at that point.

Note: The fuse on early Fords only connects to the light control switch, so if it's not a lighting issue then it's not the fuse!

[V8 Bob]

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The battery is low, as it should be close to 6.6V. Charge the battery and try starting again.

[jhb]

I agree it's bad battery terminal connections. Even if they look good take them apart, clean the post and the clamps with a wire brush or sand cloth,then axle grease, place back on the greased posts and try starting the car. Let us know what you find out.
The same thing happened to me when I was 16 on a '62 Plymouth. The horn and head-lights and radio would work but nothing when the key was turned to start the car. It took a long time for me to figure out this simple solution. Cheap fix. jackb

[JSeery]

Diagram for test:

[6lucky13]

The battery (Optima, purchased through Amazon) was installed in October 2015. I had cleaned terminals, etc. and used dielectric grease on the terminals, so I think they are OK.

I checked voltage drop on the battery while starting and it went to ~4.8v with a few clicks when I depress the starter switxh. At this time, I am assuming that the battery is bad (?). Am I correct?

Thanks...Kerry

[JSeery]

Originally Posted by 6lucky13

The battery (Optima, purchased through Amazon) was installed in October 2015. I had cleaned terminals, etc. and used dielectric grease on the terminals, so I think they are OK.

I checked voltage drop on the battery while starting and it went to ~4.8v with a few clicks when I depress the starter switxh. At this time, I am assuming that the battery is bad (?). Am I correct?

Thanks...Kerry

Maybe, or maybe it is not being charged by the generator (more likely). That again could be a bad connection or a generator issue. Get it started and check the generator output.

[6lucky13]

JSeery..thanks for the diagram to test the starter. How do I check the generator output? But, I think it is OK since ammeter always shows charging to the battery when car is running.

Kerry

[JSeery]

If you can get it running check the voltage at the battery. Should be something above 6v, say close to 7 to 7.4 v. See if the battery will take a charge from a battery charger.

[6lucky13]

I have it on a charger now...

[CaliforniaBorn36]

Have you tried rocking the vehicle while in gear. Could the Starter gear be stuck on the ring gear? I have had that happen a time or two.

[6lucky13]

Problem Solved. Followed advise of CABorn36. Followed procedure I found by TomO on the efv8 site archives:

"Your starter may be locked into the ring gear. To check this out, put the car in 3rd gear and try to push it backwards. The car should be difficult to push and the engine should turn. If the engine does not want to turn, the starter has probably locked into the ring gear. Continue to rock the car until you hear a loud bang of the starter releasing from the ring gear."

So I heard a loud bang after a few attempts at rocking the car and then car started up!

Thanks everyone.

Kerry

[CaliforniaBorn36]

Always glad when it is the easy answer.